HashFam
HashFam (styled #Fam) was an animated sitcom that aired on FOX. The show aired from April to May of 2017 for thirteen episodes. Strange announced on his Twitter profile that the show will not be renewed for a second season. Plot The show centers on the Hashs, a family who frequently uses social media. What led them to use social media was years of neglect and abuse from their father Morris, who suddenly comes back after a five year disappearance and tries to get back into the good graces of his kids. Episodes usually feature sitcom elements before delving into darker territory. Production The show was originally pitched to Adult Swim, and later various subscription-based services, but later decided to go for FOX. FX and FXX were also considered, but they would've been required to outsource the animation to an Atlanta studio, making the show indistinguishable from their other programs. Strange and Emerson intended to produce the animation in house, but found it to be too taxing. Out of all their choices for third-party studios to outsource the show to, including ShadowMachine and Titmouse Inc., Six Point Harness beat out the other options. Allusions to previous shows by Strange are prevalent in the show. In fact, the company re-acquired their mascots from Disney and they make appearances as recurring characters. Style The show utilizes a monochromatic color-scheme, with a heavy usage of black, white and various shades of red. The show also uses a distorted art-style and roughly-sketched shapes. The images become more distorted when the episode takes a dark direction or when someone's having an outburst. Strange claims the limited color-pallette was done to account for production time and to keep the character designs simple. Characters * Morris Hash (David Cross): He's a relatively nerdy man, but could get violent with the right provocation. Morris is a staunch liberal who disowned his entire family just so he could form a more progressive relationship with a Ugandan transsexual, before it turned out the latter was a typical female. He has since got back into their lives in an attempt to be part of their circle again. Even with clear signs of vitriol from his own children, his naive dialect and ego prevent him from knowing so. * Meredith Hash (Mo Collins): The main caretaker of the Hash household following Morris' departure. She tends to be overly-generous, which is why she allows Morris to stay with the family even though she's seeing different people. Meredith is sexually depraved and the possible main reason she lets Morris stay is to sedate her sexual urges, but the rest of the time she keeps them clandestine from her children and her friends. * Melvin Hash (Robbie Rist): The eldest brother in the family, aged 19, and a college sophomore enrolled in Liberty University. Of all the kids, Morris seemed to be the hardest on him to the point that he payed his own tuition just so he could get a dorm and not have a reason to go home. He's the only member of the family to not have red hair since he dyed it black. He's somewhat of an egomaniac and forcibly takes responsibility over everything when no dominant figures are present. * Maddie Hash (Elizabeth Gillies): The eldest sister, aged 17. She suffers from immense anger issues which come about over minor annoyances. Maddie has claimed that she has made accounts on every social network known in the US, and is thus an expert on what sites are the best. When it comes to accomplishing anything, whether it a social media challenge or simply being part of a movement, she does everything she could to be prolific on it. * Mel Hash (Kristen Bell): The second eldest sister, aged 16. She tends to argue a lot with Maddie over minor things. Mel's more of a tomboy and she frequents sites catered more to men. She frequently streams gameplay videos, often when she isn't with the rest of her family and for a time she was the source of the family's income until her accounts were hacked. She also tends to serve as a substitute matriarch, something she did in her father's absence. * Mortimer Hash (Brian Poeshn): Aged 15. Mortimer doesn't frequent social media as much as the rest of his family, due to a lack of confidence, though he does frequent forums and is able to at least keep up with trending issues. He lacks self-esteem and often feels threatened by his eldest siblings due to him assuming they'd do bad things to him. * Morgan Hash (Kristen Schaal): Aged 14. Morgan is overweight, unattractive and she rarely interacts with her family. Morgan's a staunch conservative an advocate for free speech. It's said that Morgan was the one who introduced the family's traditional lifestyle after Morris departed. She seems to respect Mortimer due to him protecting her from Morris and comforting her when no one else could. * Marie Hash (Olivia Hack): The youngest sister, aged 13. She is very gloomy and distant from her family, but she apparently has some form of resourcefulness because everyone seems to go to her for advice, much to her chagrin. Not much is known about her other than that she might've received the worst of Morris' abuse. * Martin and Marvin Hash (David Hornsby and H. Jon Benjamin): Mute twins, both aged 9. Morris apparently forced them to take a vow of silence before he left the Hash family. While we never hear them speak, we do hear their inner monologues. Martin has a generally neutral personality while Marvin has a dry dialect. * Alison Meeks and Colleen Dixon (Aubrey Plaza and Melissa Fahn): Attend the same school as Mortimer. They usually appear on episodes revolving around group efforts but otherwise, they either serve as a minor nuisance or an occasional aid. Episodes Reception The show received mixed reviews from critics, but overtime gained positive reviews from fans. Praise went toward the sophisticated yet outlandish comedy. Cancellation While the show was a considerable success, it was cancelled after eleven episodes.